Chapter 5: One Week.
Chapter 5: One Week.
The elegant noble carriage slowly rolled away from the Bismarck estate, its polished wheels crunching softly against the gravel road while four well-groomed horses pulled it toward the main road, gradually carrying the emissary and her escort farther from the quiet manor that stood atop the small hill, leaving behind only the sound of hooves echoing through the crisp afternoon air.
Standing before the manor’s entrance, the entire Bismarck family watched them leave.
Gustav stood with his hands folded behind his back, his stern expression refusing to soften despite the visitors already being well on their way, while his wife stood quietly beside him with red eyes that hadn’t fully recovered from the tears she had shed earlier, and Osborne remained a short distance away with a gentle smile resting upon his face as he casually waved toward the departing carriage.
Inside the carriage, Guinevere happened to glance through the small window one last time.
Her crimson eyes settled upon the young noble still waving peacefully as though he had not just agreed to leave behind everything he had ever known.
"..." Seeing no noticeable reaction even now, she couldn’t help but remain silent.
"Lady Guinevere." One of the silver-armored knights riding beside the carriage noticed her lingering gaze before speaking.
"...Yes?" She said as she slowly looked toward him.
"Pardon the inquiry my lady, but Is everything alright?" He asked in a polite tone.
For a brief moment, Guinevere remained thoughtful before quietly drawing the curtain across the window.
"...It’s nothing." She said.
She leaned comfortably against the seat. Unsure why she had a strange feeling when looking at the man earlier.
"Let us return." In the end she decided to brush it off. Her expression became calm once again.
"We have much to report to Lady Roosevelt." She added.
" As you command." Both knights said.
The carriage continued disappearing into the distance until it was eventually swallowed by the winding road beyond the estate.
Meanwhile...
Osborne was still waving.
"..." Only after the carriage had completely vanished did his arm finally lower.
The smile on his face instantly disappeared.
’...I’m dead.’ He thought as he stared blankly toward the empty road.
’No...’ He corrected himself with a helpless sigh. ’ I’m beyond dead.’
He slowly covered his face with one hand.
’...Why did I even say all of that?’
’ I could’ve just kept my mouth shut and let father handle everything for crying out loud.’
The more he replayed the conversation inside the dining hall, the more he wanted to bury himself somewhere nobody could ever find him.
’...And that condition...’ He groaned quietly. ’It didn’t even help.’
’ I was hoping she’d drop everything after hearing it but it only sealed my fate...crap.’
What had he been thinking?
At the time, everything had happened so quickly that he had spoken almost entirely on instinct, throwing out conditions without properly considering whether they would actually improve his own situation.
Looking back...
Nothing had changed.
He was still marrying one of the most terrifying women in the entire novel.
The only difference was that any future children would inherit House Roosevelt’s name.
"...Fantastic." He let out another exhausted sigh. "I really outdid myself." He lamented.
Truthfully...
Everything he had said back inside the dining hall had been spoken in the heat of the moment, because seeing Gustav treated as though his remaining son were nothing more than another political bargaining chip had stirred something inside him that he hadn’t expected.
Perhaps they weren’t his real parents and while he had only known them for a single day.
Somewhere along the way...He had already begun accepting them as his own family.
While as strange as it sounded, he only wanted someone he could rely on since he had no way of returning to the life he once lived.
Gustav’s stubborn determination, His mother’s quiet kindness.
Even Anny’s cheerful smile.
Before he had realized it, those things had slowly become precious to him.
If sacrificing his own future meant protecting theirs...
Then perhaps...It wasn’t such a terrible choice after all.
*****
The door to Osborne’s bedroom suddenly burst open.
"Young Master!"
Anny hurried inside so quickly that she nearly tripped over the doorway, her bundled brown hair slightly messy from running all the way across the manor, only for her anxious eyes to widen the moment she noticed Osborne calmly folding clothes beside his bed, a half-packed travel bag already resting on top of the mattress along with several others.
"...Oh." Osborne looked up from the neatly folded shirt in his hands before smiling warmly.
"Anny." He casually placed the shirt inside the bag. "What are you doing here?" He asked.
"...You’re..." Anny stared at him.
She blinked twice not able to grasp what she was seeing.
"...Packing." she managed to say in the end.
"I am." Osborne replied.
"...Why are you so calm?" She asked since she’d been expecting to see him completely down, not like this.
"Should I be panicking instead?" Osborne tilted his head.
Anny quickly shook her head.
"N-No." She took a few hurried steps toward him.
"I heard..." She paused before correcting herself.
"...I heard what happened with the..." Her words caught in her throat.
"...The Emissary." She lowered her voice.
"...The Emissary from the Roosevelt Marquess."
Osborne quietly nodded. "I figured news would spread quickly."
Anny bit her lower lip before nervously clutching the edge of her apron.
"...Young Master."
"...Are you..."
She hesitated.
"...Are you really planning to go with them?"
Silence filled the room.
Osborne gently placed another folded shirt into the travel bag before closing it halfway, then slowly turned toward Anny with the same calm smile she had become accustomed to seeing throughout the day.
"...Yes." He answered softly. "I am."
Anny’s eyes immediately became moist.
"...Why?" She asked, her lips trembling.
Osborne didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he slowly walked over until he stood directly before her.
Before Anny could say another word...He gently pulled her into his arms.
"...Young Master?" She froze.
Osborne softly rested one hand against the back of her head before gently stroking her brown hair, his movements slow and comforting while the other hand lightly patted her back as though trying to reassure a frightened child.
Which seemed odd since his body was 18 years old at the moment.
"...Don’t worry." He said, His voice remained calm. "I’ll be alright."
Anny tightly grabbed the back of his shirt.
"...But..." Her voice trembled.
"...The Marquess..." She lowered her head.
"...I’ve heard so many stories about her." Her fingers tightened.
"They say she’s nothing but a battle-hungry knight."
"And..."
"...And..." She began to stutter.
"They say she’s ruthless...That she never shows mercy."
"...That..." Her voice gradually became quieter.
"...I’m scared, Young master... What if she ends up doing something terrible to you."
Osborne closed his eyes.
’You think I don’t already know that?’ he joked inwardly.
If there was anyone who understood just how terrifying Lady Roosevelt truly was...
It was him.
She wasn’t merely a powerful noble.
She was one of the strongest individuals in the entire novel.
A woman whose name alone was enough to make countless enemies reconsider picking up their swords.
If the original story was anything to go by...
Even the protagonist had struggled against her.
Still...
He gently smiled.
"...Rumors are just rumors." His hand continued stroking her hair.
"People always tend to exaggerate on things they find entertaining." He chuckled softly.
"If I believed every rumor I heard, I’d have thought every noble spent their days breathing fire." He added, his words causing a tiny laugh to escape Anny, despite herself.
"...That’s impossible." She said.
"Exactly." He smiled.
"So don’t overthink it." Osborne said.
Anny remained silent for several long moments before finally looking up at him, though the worry lingering within her brown eyes had yet to disappear.
"...Then..." She gathered her courage.
"...Take me with you." She said, staring him dead in the eye.
Osborne blinked. "...What?"
"I’ll go with you." She spoke far more firmly this time.
"I’ll continue serving you. I’ll be sure to keep you company too... And I’ll I’ll..."
Osborne immediately shook his head.
"...Anny." he began.
"I’m sorry, but. It’s too dangerous."
"I don’t care." She replied, clutching his cloth tight, burying her face in his chest.
"You should." He said in a soft tone while stroking her hair.
"I don’t." She stubbornly met his gaze without backing down even a single step, though her trembling eyes betrayed just how frightened she truly was.
"...Please." She whispered. "...I don’t want you to go alone."
Osborne opened his mouth.
Then closed it again.
He looked into her unwavering eyes for several long seconds before finally letting out a defeated sigh.
"...You’re really not going to give up, are you?"
Anny quickly shook her head. "...Never."
Another sigh escaped him.
"...Alright." He smiled helplessly. "You win."
For a moment...Anny simply stared at him, unsure if he was telling the truth.
"...Really?" She muttered.
Osborne nodded. "...Really."
The worry on her face instantly melted away.
"...Yes!"
She clapped both hands together before practically bouncing where she stood, a bright smile spreading across her face that made it seem as though all of her earlier fears had vanished in an instant.
Watching her celebrate so innocently, Osborne couldn’t help letting out a quiet laugh of his own.
It seemed...
The original Osborne had never been capable of refusing Anny whenever she looked at him like that.
And judging by what had just happened...
Neither was he.